Dometic Refrigerator: Freezer Works But Refrigerator Won't Cool

I have a Dometic two-door (freezer on top) unit, NDR 1062, in a 2007 Tiffin coach.

The cooling unit failed in October, 2011 and was replaced by a Viking replacement cooling unit which has worked fine. Until now. After leaving the Tiffin service center in Alabama a few days ago we have noticed that the refrigerator is not cooling properly. The freezer does a good job of freezing ice and keeping it frozen but the refrigerator is not much below ambient. Gas or electric does not seem to make any difference.

The burner is clean--no scale, and has a good blue flame. The chimney is good and hot to the touch. Any thoughts on why one part would work OK and one would not?

The "coolant" goes to the freezer first, then the refrigerator, so compromised cooling capacity affects the refrigerator first.

Start by making sure cooling capacity is maximized:
1. Defrost if more than 1/4" of ice.
2. Do the "dollar bill test" to verify that the door seals are snug.
3. Insure that the restrictor is in the bottom/outside end of the condensate drain.
4. Check that air flow in the bottom and out the top of the outside refrigerator area is unobstructed.
5. Particularly if the upper refrigerator outside vent is in the side vs roof, make sure there is no "dead space" above the refrigerator that can accumulate heat.
6. Do the burner area tune-up as outlined in your Dometic manual. Even a slight decrease in flame size can have a detrimental affect on cooling performance.
7. Lastly, use a manometer to verify propane pressure.

Here is a link to a user manual. It covers the items Brett mentioned and has contact information.

Many of there refrigerators have a thermocouple that lets the cooling unit know when cooling is required in the refrigerator portion of the unit. I did not find any reference to the sensor, but know there is one in the repair list of parts.

Thanks, Brett and Rich, for the responses. I've been tied up with family matters but will start doing the tests prescribed by Brett and in the manual when I finally arrive home and have some time. As of this moment the refrigerator seems to be cooling properly and the temp in the refrigerator compartment this morning was 34, which is where it has been until this recent glitch.

This is an interesting topic to me as I have an appointment to have the annual service. We have been in very hot weather the last month and have felt the refrigerator has not been cooling the way it should. Unfortunately I have not been able to find any performance specs as to what temps should be and at what ambient temps. The specs on the dometic website do not provide that or I was looking in the wrong spot. Can anyone provide that? My model is a NDR 1292

I have the same problem. Mine is a RM3862 in a 2000 Dutch Star. Mine first acted up about 3 weeks ago with the onset of hot weather. Temps above 100F. I put a fan on the outside vent as recommended by a local repair guy. Within 24 hours the temp was down from 63F to about 34F. Worked good for about two weeks. Last week temps went up again both outside the MH and inside the refrigerator. Local guy said to turn off for 24 hours to allow all the chemicals to reform. No luck after that. Freezers freezes good but no cooling in refrig area.

I talked to a guy in Arkansas about a new cooling unit for the refrigerator but my local guy will not have anything to do with it. He says they aren't worth the money. So now I am looking at replacing with a home type refrigerator.

Bill, After we talked last night I remembered the topic about refrigerator vent. If you can try removing the vent cover up on the roof and check for obstructions, Since you did have a fan blowing try putting it back and check to see if you have air flow out the vent. At C/W out on West Reno (just around the corner from you) they have vent screens for the fridge.It keep critters from flying or crawling in the bottom of the unit.
Have a good one and tell the DW Hi from us.